


The One With Rain

by Skysquid22



Series: The One With... [3]
Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: Fluff, Graphic Description of Apartments, I need to learn how to tag better, M/M, Rain, Sicfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-19
Updated: 2017-04-19
Packaged: 2018-10-20 19:38:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,921
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10669428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skysquid22/pseuds/Skysquid22
Summary: Cars gets caught in the rain on the way to Barbas apartment. He ends up getting sick as a result. Mother Hen-ing ensues.





	The One With Rain

**Author's Note:**

> Wow this took forever. Got busy with life and I started a started a story I wasn't happy with. So you may never see that one. Anyway I dropped that one and wrote this one. Sorry for all the mistakes and the sudden ending. I kinda rushed it here. All well. Hope you enjoy it anyway.

Why did Sonny agree to do this? His crush on Barba was already big now he just had to suggest to work on the current case at one of their apartments. He once again fiddles with his thin coat, thinking about the next 3-4 hours in close quarters with the ADA. And why did the man in question go with it. He could have easily suggested working at his office like any other time. 

Sonny sighs and looks to the rapidly darkening sky. He can already smell the rain on the horizon. Barba’s place is fairly close; one subway ride and a 20 minute walk and he’d be there. Carisi considered taking a taxi the rest of the way, but decided against it.

For some reason. 

There’s no way to get one now; Sonny is going to spend the rest of the walk in the rain. He tugs his jacket closer and walks faster as a light drizzle falls. Oh why, oh why did he not bring a bigger coat.

He walks up the brownstone, finally getting out of the downpour. He spent the last 10 minutes caught in a storm, miserable. The rain and cold went straight through his jacket and it clinged to his drenched suit like ivy to a brick wall. He couldn’t stop shivering, even as he entered the warm building and went up the elevator. Sonny’s mind was stuck in a loop of ‘What would Barba say?’.

Carisi brought out his phone, checking the room number once again. Can never be too sure. He knocks on the door. Thank god he didn’t have to bring any case files, otherwise they would’ve fell to the rain.

Soon enough the door opens and once Barba catches a look at him his eyes widen in surprise. His jaw drops a tiny bit, but he promptly snaps it shut. 

“What happened to you?” He scoffs.

Ah, very blunt. Sonny smiles and looks toward his feet, not wanting to meet the man’s eyes. 

“Got caught in the rain.” He pauses, “Are we ready to begin?”

This time Barba doesn’t even bother with closing his mouth. He shakes his head in disbelief and Sonny can see a tiny quirk on the edge of his mouth, resembling a smile. Barba steps back, allowing him in. Sonny steps forward, away from the puddle in the carpet. Barba’s apartment is exactly as he imagined it. Modern, dark, and yet comforting. Perfectly Barba. And of course it was spotless, disregarding the plethora of case files scattered across the coffee table. Looks like he couldn’t resist starting without him.

Barba closes the door behind him and before Sonny takes more steps he stops him. The shorter man swerves to the front of him and Carisi looks down and is about to apologize to Barba’s thoughtful face, but he beats him to the punch.

“Look. Stay here for a moment.” Barba holds up his hands in a calming gesture and turns (presumably) toward the bedroom. “Don’t touch anything.” He throws over his shoulder.

Sonny would head over to the files and take a look at his progress, but he has no intention of getting yelled at. He’s surprised he has gotten scolded for getting his suit wet or that he showed up late. With that thought he waits patiently taking in the rest of the apartment.

Looking at the right wall are doors, directly to the left is the living room. The wall now behind Sonny held a flat screen, adjacent was an extraordinary comfortable looking couch and a glass coffee table. Further than that was a clean and unremarkable kitchen. 

As Sonny was gaking at the room Barba came out of the maybe bedroom. With a pair of extra clothes and a fuzzy, pure, white towel. He approached meekly and his face looked so out of place Carisi gave his full attention, committing this moment to memory. He held out the articles and then took a deep breath.

“Here. Go take a shower and come back and we’ll start.” He says softly. Barba walks back toward the maybe bedroom and looks back expecting Sonny to follow. He doesn’t have to expect, he knows. As it turns out it was indeed a bedroom. He follows him to the most modern looking thing in the whole apartment, the master bath. Sonny turns to meet Barba’s eyes, who won’t meet his own.

“Try not to take up all the hot water will you?” He meets his eyes for a split second before fleeing back to the main room. 

Sonny stood there in shock. Barba was being unusually nice. Maybe he felt sorry for one of Carisi’s nicer suits. He did after all want to impress him as always, thus he wore a grey three piece suit with a black tie. But, now it was wrinkled and itchy and would want nothing more to strip and get into dry clothes. He looked down at the attire he’d be wearing after the shower. Grey sweatpants and some t-shirt with a logo he didn’t recognize. 

Still in disbelief he shuts the door and takes a shower; minding not to use too much hot water and not to take too long. When he gets out he dries himself off with the fluffy towel and puts on the borrowed wardrobe. The drying clothes he lays out in the bedroom.

Returning to the main room he saw a relaxed Barba sitting on the couch, working on the case. Like any other time they’ve worked together, he had his jacket tossed over the side of the sofa with his sleeves rolled up. A small glass of scotch sat next to a picture of a bloodied and bruised face of one of victims of the case. He took his place on the other side of the couch and jumped right in. 

An hour passed as they steadily polished their case. Once initially sitting down Barba had offered him a drink, which he politely refused. They talked occasionally, only sticking to what would hold up in court and victims testimonies. 

-

He watched carefully as Carisi said no to scotch, he moved slowly and carefully like each step he took was more important than the last. They sat a few feet apart on the leather sofa.

“Patterson is expected to testify, so I already scheduled trial prep for her. How’s the DNA prog---”

Barba stopped to himself to take in and address Carisi’s shaking. He’s not sure if it’s from nervousness or he caught a cold from the storm, but it’s annoying the crap out of him. It’s the only thing he can really focus on, to add the the full body jitters that he clearly ignores, his right knee is bouncing up and down. As he is turning around to look at him Carisi continues his conversation. 

“Still nothing. Rollins already questioned the---” 

This night is full of interruptions. Carisi looks down to Barba’s large hand on his knee, forcing it to stop. He moves his gaze to the owner of the hand, he sees him looking intently. Otherwise his face was unreadable. His chin drops a bit but he closes it when Barba’s hand jumps to his knee to his forehead. Carisi followed his hand with his eyes but said nothing.

Barba squints after holding his hand to Carisi’s head, “Hmm. Give me a minute.” He excuses himself out of his chair and disappears into the kitchen. With determination he grabs some ibuprofen, water, and a thermometer. When he returns Carisi has a look of pure confusion on his face, it’s quite amusing. He sees what Barba has and puts up his hands in defense.

“Look Counselor,---Umhp!”

Barba takes the opportunity to put the thermometer in his mouth to both stop his rant and to take his temperature. Carisi all the less doesn’t take it out or say anything. Barba heads back to his seat with a pleased smirk plastered on his face. He sits down and while Carisi watches him, he starts to put away case files.

“Waht aer youhp doiang?” Carisi manages to mumble out.

“I know it’s hard, but keep your mouth shut.” He gives a moment to admire Carisi’s face, he can see that he desperately wants to snap back but he knows better. Barba returns to his task. “I can’t focus, you can’t focus.” Carisi gives a ‘Hmm’ and squints his eyes in response. “Working on the case isn’t going to help, so we’ll just. Hang out. I guess.” He ends awkwardly. 

Carisi huffs and opens his mouth to talk. Luckily before he manages to choke out his snarky reply, Barba steals his thunder once more. He grabs the thermometer and glances at the temperature. 

“100. Even.” He sighs and look helplessly at him. Carisi shakes his head and stands.

“As I was saying, I’m fine to work, perfectly fine. But, if you want me to leave I can.” 

He turns to the door and stops and heads into the direction of Barba’s bedroom. 

“No I don’t want you to leave.” He adds a little too hastily. Grabbing the drugs and water he follows Carisi to his bedroom. “You’re sick. You need to rest.”

He has his back turned away from Barba, fondling his wrinkled beyond belief clothes. He’s hesitating. Which means he can be convinced. So like a true lawyer he gives no room for argument. 

“It’s pouring outside. It’s late. Your clothes are still wet. And you’re sick.” Carisi turns around. He’s frowning, but yet, he’s meeting his eyes. “You aren’t leaving.” Barba finishes.

He walks over, minding the distance between them, holding out his hand. Carisi scoops up the ibuprofen from his hand and accepts the glass of water. Barba, without a word, leaves the room. He returns to the coffee table and he cleans up. The remainder of the scotch is thrown into the back of his throat, leaving a nice burn. Case files are shuffled together, pictures of brutalized women are paired together. Any remaining evidence on the table is cleaned up and put away. Carisi comes out with a half empty glass (or half full to Carisi probably) of water. 

“So, you want me to stay over? Where would I sleep?” Carisi muses.

“The couch of course.” Being a good host wasn’t exactly a top priority for him. Barba sits down on said couch and turns on the fancy TV. “So. Since you are my guest, what do you wanna watch?”

Carisi joins him and pointedly sits a little closer than what was before. “Doesn’t really matter to me.” He yawns. Barba, being indecisive, throws on Forensic Files and heads to the kitchen. Carisi scoffs, “Really?”

“It’s easy to make fun of and addicting to watch.” Barba says a too defensively. Carisi turns and looks back at him, his blonde curls bouncing. “Now what are you doing?”

Barba grabs a pot and stands, bringing his hand over his chest and says coyly. “Being a good a host, of course.” He judges Carisi’s pale face. He’s still confused. “I’m making you soup.” Barba deadpans. A look of realization crosses the detective's face and he can hear a soft ‘ah.’. He doesn’t look back to the show though, he’s perfectly content to watch Barba cook. It’s a little unnerving to have an audience in your kitchen, but it gives a strong urge to impress. Even if it’s just putting soup in a pot and stirring it occasionally. 

When it’s done he refills Carisi water glass and takes the bowl to the living room. He gives a tart thanks in return and Barba sits a tiny bit closer to him.

-

He’s pretty glad he drank as much water as he did, leaving the glass half full. Just being around Barba is making his throat dry and brash demeter he gave to Carisi when he was considering leaving didn’t help. He should leave, but he doesn’t want to. And neither does Barba apparently. Sitting on the couch that not too long they were reviewing witness statements on, Carisi watches Barba cook. It’s hardly anything to talk about, but it’s mesmerizing enough to not look away. 

When Barba returns to the couch, soup in tow, he sits a tiny bit closer and gets absorbed into the TV show. It’s chicken soup, pretty good considering it came from a can. Ah well, it’s food and he hasn’t eaten since noon. They channel surf for awhile, both too picky and both have different tastes to settle on anything for too long. 

An hour passes and it’s late, they’ve returned to the cheesy awfulness of Forensic Files. Sonny’s head has somehow ended up on Barba’s shoulder. He makes a jab on how the prosecution should have taken a different route, Sonny gave a noncommittal ‘Hmm’. Earlier he’d would have said that they shouldn’t have waited for to check to perpetrators home, but talking would take too much energy right now. So instead he tilts his head further into Barba’s neck, he can only see out of one eye and despite the wild temperature changes of his body, staying close to Barba will stay a constant. 

Sonny woke to a gentle shaking of his shoulders, peering one eye open he sees a button to a shirt. Otherwise the room is dark. 

“Carisi.” A soft comforting voice in the dark says. That milky voice does nothing but lure him back to sleep. 

“Carisi.” The voice repeats, shaking the shoulders a little more.

He can’t open his other eye. It’s being obscured by something solid. He shifts a little and ignores the soft voice, burrowing further into button. Now, he can’t see anything. He can feel movement beneath him and the weight from his shoulders move to his back. It stayed there for a moment then it returned to the shoulders, sliding under his arms.

“Sonny.” The voice was a bit closer now and it sounded pleading. He wanted nothing more than to fall asleep against the warm bulk beneath him. The owner persistent voice was trying to lift him up and off, it seems he won’t get any much needed sleep here. 

Sonny groaned pushed himself off, when he threatened to fall back down strong arms and hands kept him up and adjusted it so he was sitting slightly upright. His eyes searched the dark and only found a dark outline. He couldn’t focus on the body, he could tell his own body was shaking badly, his body felt cold after his main source of heat was gone. The shadow moved away and he tried to reach out and grab it and pull it close to regain that lost warmth, but to no avail. 

His memory just got fuzzier after that. Sonny can remember drugs and water being pushed into his hand, and maybe a thermometer in his mouth once more. He took them like he was put on autopilot. He vaguely remembers being practically dragged to the bedroom by his hand. Soon as his head hit the pillow he began to fall asleep, but in one last valiant attempt, he reached out to the body trying to pull it down next to him. He thinks he might have been successful. 

-

Poor, poor, Carisi. As the night wore on his replies were spaced further and further apart. The sad soul started to lean his head on Barbas shoulder. Then started to lean his whole body on him. When it was clear he fell asleep, he turned off the TV and sat with him a little longer. Then he himself fell asleep as well, when he woke Carisi was sandwiched between the couch and Barba. Half of his body was in the seam between the cushions and the other half was on top of him, curling around him. 

It was kind of adorable.

Under the safety and cover of night he watched the detectives’ back fall up and down with each breath. Carisi’s head was just below his collarbone and from his angle he couldn’t see his face. What he could see were the soft blonde curls on his head that somehow magically turned grey in the darkness. Their legs were intertwined. Barba wondered if he’d actually remember any of this when he woke. He could very easily pass it off as a literal fever dream. 

As much as he was content to keep watching Carisi until Barba once again fell asleep, he had a suit on. He didn’t want his to meet the same fate as the taller mans’ suit. So with what willpower he could muster up, he snaked his arms around so he could shake Carisi awake.

“Carisi.”

Still nothing, he tried again, this time he got a reaction. His breathing changed. He gave a brief moment for him to adjust before 

“Carisi.” 

Nada.

“Carisi.” He hisses, putting a little more vigor into his shake of the shoulders.

He then tries the burrow further into Barba by tightening his grip on his shoulder and shoving his face completely into his chest. Oh, he’s going nowhere with this strategy. He drags his hand across Carisi’s back and settling there for a moment to think. The hands return to hook under his arms and begins to prepare himself. He leans closer to his ear.

“Sonny.” 

Barba’s hoping the unfamiliar nickname would jolt Carisi up a bit, but ends up with the opposite effect. Maybe whispering it was not the best idea. But, still, giving up now would do him no good. So he tries again and again this time using his arms more. Finally Carisi groans and sits up a little, it’s progress and before he could collapse again under his own weight, Barba uses his position to fully push him up. After a bit of movement he was sitting on the couch, his body fully flush with the back of the sofa. 

Like a puppy caught in the rain, he was shaking badly. Another round of medicine will do good for him in the long run. So he moved away, getting up to go to the kitchen. A pitiful hand reached out but then slowly receded back down to where Barba just sat. In the kitchen he blindly put away the bowl for the soup, gets more ibuprofen, water, and a thermometer and quickly retreats to his bedroom to change into pajamas. 

Back in the living room, Carisi once again fell asleep. Shaking him again, he takes his temperature without so much as a peep. 102. Crap. He takes the drugs willingly and almost mechanically. In his diseased state, there’s no way in hell he’s going to let Carisi sleep on his couch. He, himself can sleep on the couch. So he takes a hold of his hands and lifts him off the couch. Kinda hard to do since Carisi is a full head taller than him. Anyway, he manages to get him on his feet and starts to lead him to the bedroom by his right hand. 

He settles and tucks him in, vaguely reminding him of his own mother. Right as he’s pulling away from Carisi, the man reaches out desperately. And here he thought he was passed out as soon he hit the mattress. Barbas’ wrist is trapped in iron grip and it’s slowly dragged onto the bed. The grip softens just a bit, most likely enough to break free, but he has no intention of leaving now. Instead of taking the right choice, setting up a makeshift bed in the living room and sleeping there, he gets under the covers and falls asleep to the soft sounds of Carisi breathing. 

In the dull of the night, the soft curls of his hair drop over his forehead. Kinda cute in a way. 

-

Pain, soreness, achiness, and a stuffy nose is what he wakes up too. And a impressive migraine as well. He groans and regretfully opens his eyes. It’s bright, but still early in the morning so the light is soft and dull. All though, that’s mostly due to the giant curtains covering every window in the apartment. He turns over, away from the light, snuggles closer into his pillow and pulls up the covers he kicked away during the night. He feels miserable. But, he should probably get up. Bracing for the light, he opens his eyes.

It’s Barba, and he’s practically mirroring Sonny’s position. The difference being that the covers on his side aren’t as tossed. 

Sonny remembers that this is Barba’s bed. Not his. He was put here instead of the couch, looks like Barba took pity on him for once. But, why was he in same bed as him? Why didn’t he take the couch? Wait, he knows. Carisi effectively pulled Barba onto the bed, though he didn’t think he would stay.

The light from the window drifted past Sonny's shoulder and onto Barba’s face. He was in perfect contempt. He let a moment pass to think about waking up to this everyday. Barba has somehow found himself into pajamas and his hair was wild and tossed this there and that. Sonny smiled and sighed. That sigh turned into a cough, reminding him of how sore and dry his throat was. 

The racket woke Barba up unfortunately. One eye open became two, then he pushed himself out of his bed and left. Carisi watched the ADA leave then he turned onto his back and gingerly dabbed at his throat. Barba came back a few minutes later with actual cold medicine, even more water, and that familiar thermometer. 

“Why did you stay?” Sonny's’ voice was almost unrecognizable. It was so hoarse and scratchy. 

Barba put down the items on the nightstand. He turned and put the thermometer in his mouth, effectively silencing him.

He smirks. “You were adamant about it.”

Sonny begrudgingly sat up in the bed, sniffing all the way. After an awkward minute he removed the instrument from his mouth.

He took a deep sigh and said, “102. Well, your fever was a bit higher over night. So it dropped .3 degrees.” he looked up to meet Sonny’s eyes, tearing them away from the thermometer. “Congrats.” He grinned.

Sonny replied with a pitiful and sarcastic ‘yay’ which sended him into a coughing fit. 

Barba’s expression shifted from amusement to guilt. He grabbed two giant orange pills from the nightstand he was standing beside and the glass of water. Sonny took the offer and swallowed them down with an ‘ugg’. 

His face was back to amusement. “You should call in sick for work. You’re in no condition to arrest anyone.”

He hated to admit it but he was right. Even if he just did paperwork, last night proved that he wouldn’t even be able to do that. He should probably go home though, Barba was being unusually generous. He’d better get out of his hair now. So he moved to lean forward and was in the process of swinging his legs from under the comforter when two strong hands nearly shoved him back against the pillow.

“You aren’t going anywhere. Better off staying here.”

Sonny looked over at him ludicrously. “Are you offern’?” He croaked. “Look for your sake and mine I’ll go home and take the day off.”

Barba squinted and stared blankly, like he was rolling the thought in his head. “I don’t think that’s a great idea, but fine. I’ll let you go.”

He then moved away to the edge of the bed taking the water and waited there patiently for Sonny to follow. He swung his achy legs over the side of the bed and tried to stand. His stupid long, gangly legs held no weight and before he could collapse to the floor he managed to fall to the bed. As he fell, Barba rushed to his side, nearly spilling the water. He managed to get a hand on his bicep but when Carisi hit the bed, his hand pulled away like it was burned. His eyes were guilty and avoided his gaze. 

“Alright nevermind. You can’t even go home, I’ll get your phone, you call yourself in sick, and I will have to leave. However, I’ll keep tabs on you and give you case updates. I’ll see if I can leave earlier today.” He then set the water down and exited the room. 

Sonny slided back under the covers and rethought Barba’s absolute proposition. He returned with Carisi’s almost dead phone, pluged it in and pulled up the contacts for Carisi to call. Left with no other foreseeable option and in no mood to argue he called Benson. 

“Carisi how are you? Is there something about the case?”

Barba moved to his closet and began to file through his plethora of suits.

“No… Nothing about the case. I called to let you know that I can’t make it to work. I’m sick.”

The line was silent for a moment. Barba chose a milky white over shirt and similar button up shirt. 

“Ah, I can tell. I hope you get better. I’ll have Rollins keep you updated.”

He smiled at that, he’ll have two sources on the case now. A light blue pin striped waistcoat was plucked from the pack and added to the shirts.

“Thank you. I… really appreciate it.”

In quick succession Barba chose a navy suit to pair along the waistcoat and shirt.

“Get some rest Carisi. Get well soon. Goodbye.”

Now was the most important part, choosing a tie. A choice in which he took delicately. 

“Bye.”  
As the call ended, he finally made a decision. A silk dark purple. It probably had a special name for that color, but Sonny was still early to the tie and suit scene.

Barba moved and stopped at the doorway to the bathroom. He turned and said, “I’ve got to get ready for work. Once I get out I’ll make some soup.” soon enough the door was shut and Sonny was left wondering what he was doing there. This is a little too far for a coworker to go. But, if he was in Barba’s position he would be doing the same. 

Huh, who knew he had a heart after all. He turned and curled into the bed. He wondered if it would be weird if he leaned over and sniffed at Barba’s pillow. Yeah, probably. 

When he wakes up the light in the room has changed. Definitely the afternoon and checking his now fully charged phone proves that. There’s also some messages from a variety of people. How long did he sleep for? There’s a note on the nightstand right next to some cold medicine pills and that familiar water glass. It’s just a sloppy and hastily written post-it note but it says, “Soup is in the fridge, feel free to warm it up once you can move. You can take a shower if you are up for it.”

Sonny sets the note down and takes his medicine like a good boy. He then looks through his messages. There’s a few from Barba about the case and one from him that reads, [Are you feeling better? You better not eat all my food.] There’s a few from Liv for the exact same reasons. Three are about the case and one is to check up on him. Amanda also texted him but for the exact opposite reasons. One is about the case, the other three are asking if he was ok. 

To Rollins he texts, [Yeah I’m fine just sick. Already getting updates on the case from the Lieu.]

To Barba he sends a simple, [I’m ok.]

And to Benson, [Thanks for the updates, I’m getting better so I’ll be there tomorrow.]

Ok maybe he won’t be in tip top shape for tomorrow, but being sick isn’t going to stop him from doing his job. Except today. If it weren’t for Barba he’d be at work right now instead of stuck in his bed. Maybe that’s for the best.

As he’s mulling over his thoughts, he gets a reply from Rollins. [Ok Sonny get better. You must be bored out of your mind being stuck in your apartment all day. Or maybe not, you are probably watching all the movies you keep bragging about.]

[Haha. I just woke up from a ‘who knows how long’ nap.]

[I miss those. TTYL gotta check up on a witness statement.]

[K.]

Maybe a movie wouldn’t be so bad, only thing is, does Barba have any movies in his place? His phone buzzes and it shows that Liv responded to him. [Don’t rush it now.]

Sonny sits up and using the nightstand as a makeshift crutch, he is able to stand. A few steps on his sore legs hurts but, he supposes that it would do him good in the end. He heads to the living room. It perfectly clean, not a thing out of place. Taking a turn for kitchen and opening the fridge he sees a bowl of soup lying abandoned on a shelf. Attached was a handwritten note that read, ‘Chicken Noodle Soup’.

He grabs the soup, heats it up, and sits down to enjoy it. Nothing says sickness like chicken noodle soup from can. After taking a tentative spoonful of the soup his phone buzzes. And again, and again. Investigating, it turns out it’s Barba giving updates. Even though Liv already gave her perspective, it’s nice to see the lawyer point of view as well. Ever the devil’s advocate he soaks up the info and sends back his thoughts on the matter.

The conversation took on a constant flow of information and theories. After a few minutes of this Barba threw a rock into the river, completely disrupting the flow.

[I’m coming home, see you in a bit.]

Wait, what.

[Wait. what? You don’t have to go home just for me. It’s almost 5]

He doesn’t get a reply. 

Sonny polishes off the soup and cleans up his dishes. Holgen Place isn’t extremely far from Barba’s home so taking that in account he decides against the shower and puts back on his stiff clothes. He has at least his slacks on when the door the bedroom opens. Dang. He thought he had more time. He didn’t even hear Barba open the front door.

Carisi holds his shirt closer to him as he watches realization crossover Barba’s face before it disappears completely. But, before the confusion disappears he puts on his shirt and opens his mouth to apologize. But before he opens his mouth he sees something almost unreadable on Barba’s face. It vanishes quicker than he saw it but, it was something along the lines of… wanting? Arousal? Whatever it was it expired quick enough to make Sonny think he hallucinated it. And he probably did.

-

Barba opens the door and is stopped in his tracks by a half naked Sonny. Carisi instinctively hugs his undershirt closer to his body and hurriedly pulls it over. He takes a moment to gawk and watch his muscles flex before snapping out of it. 

“Sorry I was hoping to get dressed and be out of your hair before you came back.”

Barba shook his head, “No need to apologize. But I should, sorry, I should have knocked.” He looked off to the side.

“Did you just say you were sorry?” Carisi smirked.

And the moment of apology has passed. “I did. I was sorry for about 2 seconds.”

“Hey I’ll take it.”

Carisi takes this opportunity to move the conversation away from the teasing to questioning. “Why did leave work early? For you I mean, you usually stay after hours.”

Instead of answering Barba walked out and back into the living room, fully expecting Carisi to follow him. He was right.

“When I left, you were dead to the world. So I figured after court and you texted me back I would head home. I can work from home you know.” Not often, but still. He usually doesn’t take that opportunity because at least at the office there’s someone there.

Carisi took a seat and said nothing. He continued to watch Barba drag out his work and get working on it at his dinner table. Sonny takes a deep, ragged breath and pulls his hands over his pale and clammy face. “Well. I’m going to go home and be sick somewhere else.”

Barba stops in his tracks and snaps his head, with an incredulous look, to face Carisi. “I hope you know that I’m not kicking you out just because I’m back.”

“No, no.” He dismisses, throwing his hands around. “You’ve already take enough care of me. I should go home and get better there. And besides, I feel like I’m intruding.”

He shakes his in a reply and sets down his papers. “You aren’t intruding. Who knows, you could get even sicker out there.”

It’s a weak excuse and they both know it. It’s still cold and there are isolated storms out there, but despite all that it would be incredibly easy to grab a cab or call an Uber and leave. 

“Look you don’t have to keep me any longer than necessary. I’ll be fine. And---”

He cuts himself off because he finally gets it.

“Oh. You want me to stay.” A wide grin spills across his face. His dimples marking the border to his happiness.

And like any true lawyer, he avoids the question. Or rather, he pretends Carisi’s revelation didn’t happen.

“Or perhaps you would rather go home and rest in your own bed, eat your own food, and watch your own movies and such.”

Carisi is quick to stumble out his reassurance. A little too quickly. “Ah, nah. It’s boring being cooped up in your own house. There’s no one to really talk to. Kinda lonely.”

Barba is no fool. He catches the emotional manipulation and in under any other circumstance he would have chastised the detective, but alas, his own mind is easily swayed to the aspect of Carisi staying. Even if he is sick.

He takes a deep breath, more of a begrudging sigh than anything. Catching Carisi’s endlessly hopeful eyes he says, “Alright.”

“Alright?” 

“Alright.”

He pauses and scans his work. “You said earlier that you wanted to help on the case.” He extends a few pieces of paperwork to him. “Well, here’s your chance.”

Carisi reaches from the papers, opening his mouth in the process. Expecting this Barba pulled the documents back slightly, “And don’t you dare, say anything, about me ‘going soft’.”

He snaps his mouth closed and takes the papers, his smile and gaze never waver. “I love that movie.”

Barba pulls his hands to his face, leans over the table and sighs dramatically. It gets a (frankly adorable) laugh out of Carisi. 

They ended up renting that movie later that evening. And at the end of the night when Carisi was once again forced to his bedroom he offered an proposition. To his surprise the detective makes great company, so he suggested, after his sickness has passed, that Carisi would spend more time with him after hours. 

“Seems to me counselor, that you’re warming up to me.” It was muffled due to half his face obscured in a pillow. He could only see half a smile. “But, yeah, that’s fine with me.”

Carisi left in the morning and came back almost every night after that. Then after enough teasing from Rollins about ‘friend’ he sees almost every night, he gets the courage to ask Barba out. And luckily for him he somehow agrees.


End file.
